Lighting fixtures are known in the art. Since the invention of the incandescent light bulb, or lamp, lighting fixtures housing incandescent lamps have been deployed in countless environments in countless configurations. The development of the fluorescent lamp and its concomitant energy savings led to their widespread use and placement in areas previously populated with incandescent lights. Today, fluorescent fixtures vastly predominate in many places, especially business and commercial settings where energy cost savings are amplified.
Overtime, fluorescent fixtures have been modified to not only improve upon the aesthetic look of the fixtures, but also the light scattering characteristics. As the industry shifts to newer energy saving technologies, such as light emitting diodes (LEDs), the desire to maintain the aesthetics and superior lighting characteristics of existing fluorescent fixtures remains. In other words, prior artisans are seeking to develop an LED fixture that has the outward appearance of an existing fluorescent fixture, while also providing the uniform “bat wing” light output, even luminousity, and favorable spacing criteria of fluorescent fixtures.
A number of prior artisans have attempted to achieve these goals by replacing the elongated lamps of fluorescent fixtures with strips of LEDs. These and other prior artisans have recognized that the swapping of LEDs in the place of fluorescent bulbs does result in the superior lighting characteristics of the original fixtures. Problems encountered include inferior brightness, uneven luminosity, presence of dark areas, inability to create a “bat wing” distribution of light, and poor spacing criteria.
In an effort to overcome these drawbacks with LED lighting fixtures, some prior artisans have attempted to increase the number or brightness of the LEDs by using multiple strips of LEDs or larger diodes. Other prior artisans have attempted to address these problems by modifying the size, shape, or angles of the reflectors and lenses of the fixtures. And still others, have attempted to address these problems by a combination of these methods. To date, those in the art have failed to solve the problems in successfully deploying LED lighting in place of traditional fluorescent lighting.
The foregoing highlights the long-felt, yet unresolved, need in the art for an LED lighting fixture that overcomes the problems in the art. The foregoing also highlights the long-felt, yet unresolved, need in the art for methods of using LEDs in a manner that results in suitable lighting characteristics.